


Thieves and Caves

by DenMoother



Category: Fireman Sam
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-17 11:46:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28724583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DenMoother/pseuds/DenMoother
Summary: Mystery in the Sky as told from Malcolm's POV. Professor Polonium and Crompton cause problems for PontyPandy after they arrive with their Flying-Man Suit. Will Malcolm and Sergent Ravani be able to stop them?Warning. Does feature character death
Relationships: MalcolmxOc
Kudos: 1





	1. Quiet Day

**Warning. This story takes place during Mystery in The Sky. If you have not seen the special, then maybe this story isn't for you. This is my retelling of the story from Malcolm's POV. If you cannot handle the fact that there's a homosexual couple in it, then don't read it.  
**

**-Den Moother**

Sunlight filtered in through the window. I groaned and placed an arm over my face. I turned over onto my side only to be met with something soft. Winter had curled up rather close to me. He began to stir slowly. His eye lids fluttered. "Mal? You okay?" he asked tiredly. 

I nodded. "Yeah. Just have the case of the "I don't want to wake up"" I muttered. 

Winter chuckled tiredly. "Forgot that you aren't much of a morning person." 

I shoved the blankets back. Tomorrow was the day of the new station's opening. Winter and I had to make sure construction was finished beforehand. Winter slowly sat upright. "I have to check on my flowers before we leave. This summer heat is killer."

"You do that and meet me down at the station." 

"Sounds good." Winter's stomach then howled. "Maybe after breakfast though."

Warm smells wafted through the house. Winter was trying his hand at making pancakes. I sat in the living room, watching him. The two of us had been married for a little under a year. It took Winter a lot of courage to ask me out. He turned a pancake over in the pan. "Yes! It didn't stick!" he cheered. 

I chuckled quietly. "I think you've finally got the science of cooking down, babe." 

"I did tell you that I would try to get better." muttered Winter. 

Winter finished making breakfast. He set the plates down on the coffee table. I could smell the hazelnuts he crushed into the pancakes. I took a bite of one. I cracked a grin at him. Winter tilted his head to the side. "Spot on."

I saw his face light up. "Thank the gods." he sighed. 

The two of us ate in silence. Winter took our plates to the sink. He gave them a quick scrub. I grabbed my helmet off the wall. I loaded my baton and taser onto my belt. Winter snagged his cap off the counter. He put it on his head. "Let's roll." 

We headed for Sam's house first. Winter took the spare key he had for Sam's garden out of his pocket. He used it to unlock the gate. Winter headed over to his flower garden. With Winter checking on his flowers, I headed off to the new station. 

A large blue tarp covered the vast majority of the police station. I swapped my Constable helmet for a hard hat as soon as I entered the sight. One of the builders looked up at me. "Everything is all set to go for tomorrow's launch."

I nodded. "The tarp will come off before noon tomorrow, right?"

"That's correct."

"Excellent. Just make sure everything is nice and neat."

"Oh don't worry, PC Malcolm, we'll make sure things are clean for the Sergent's arrival." 

"Good. I just don't want her to get the wrong idea."

The builder laughed. "well this is PontyPandy." 

"True. I'm still learning that this town isn't what it seems." I mused. 

I remembered the first day I arrived in PontyPandy. The fire station was hosting an Open Day for all services. That was when I got to help with my first rescue. I still think about Nipper driving Hyrdus from time to time. Didn't realize dogs could drive. "Well I'll leave ya to it. Officer Price and I will be hanging out in the temporary if you need us."

Winter came running down the street. He joined me outside of the new station. "So, what did I miss?" he panted. 

"Nothing much other than preparations are nearly complete." 

He nodded. "Good. It'll be about time too. Shall we head for the portable?" 

"Yep."

We had a portable set up close by. I sat down in the chair close to the camera system that was set up. Winter sat at the table. He took out his gardening book. "You know, the one thing I miss about London is always having call outs." he muttered. 

"Same here." I leaned back in my chair. 

The two of us sat in silence for a long while. Winter closed his book. He laid his head on the table. The rest of the afternoon dragged on slowly. Winter had to clock out for the day so it was just me in the portable alone. The radio sitting on my desk went off. "A Norman-Man rescue has gone wrong at Joe Sparkes Garage." came Station Officer Steele's voice over the radio. 

I shook my head. "That Norman is really something." 

I grabbed a binder off the shelf. Since I wasn't needed right there and then, I figured I would try to at least sort the schedules for next week. 

I heard a light tap on the portable door. "Come in." 

Winter walked in. "Hey big cat. I figured I would keep you company. It's kind of boring at home without you."

I chuckled. "Well it's not much better here. I'm doing the schedule for next week."

"I can see that." 

Another knock came at the door. I frowned. "Did you bring a friend?"

"No. It's just me." 

I stood up and answered the door. An older female sporting a Sergent's uniform stood on the other side of it. She smiled at me. "Afternoon, Constable."

"Serg! You're early!" I exclaimed. "The new station hasn't been finished."

She entered the portable. "I'm aware. I figured I would arrive early. Has anything happened before my arrival."

"Nope. You've got the case of the small town blues here, Sergent." interjected Winter. 

Rose turned to him. "Constable, who is this?"

"Rose, this is Officer Winter Price. He's a transfer from London." 

Winter smiled. He bowed. "At your service." 

She nodded. "The HQ didn't tell me that there was a second person here. Forgive my sudden surprise." 

"They've been doing that an awful lot lately." said Winter. 

Winter then turned to me. "I thought you told her about me, babe?" he said through the corner of his mouth.  
  
"It slipped my mind. I've been very busy the past couple of weeks."  
  
"Yeah sitting around." He folded his arms over his chest. His size made it rather hard for me to take him seriously.   
  
"We've been over this, your size couldn't intimidate a Chihuahua." 

Rose sat down near the cameras. She cleared her throat which caught the both of us off guard. She looked to Winter. "Officer Price, what are you doing here if you're off duty?" 

"Oh. I came to keep Malcolm company, ma'am."

"I see. I don't think that'll be necessary now that I'm here." 

"Of course. See you later, Malcolm."

I grinned apologetically at him. He gave me a small hug before leaving. I walked back over to the desk. I picked up the schedules. I sat down at the table with them. The two of us sat in silence until the evening hours. I signed off for the night, leaving Rose to tend to the portable by herself. 

Winter was in the process of making dinner. The smell of chili sauce hit the roof of my nose. My mouth watered. "smells good, babe."

"Thanks. I'm trying one of your mother's recipes. I just hope I don't end up burning it." 

I slid off my work vest. "I'm sure it'll come out okay, Winter. I'm off to shower and get changed." 

"Cool. Dinner should be ready by the time you come back." 

I headed upstairs to shower. I let the warm water rush down my backside. A tired groan left my lips. A part of me wondered if moving to PontyPandy was a good idea considering how quiet it was. I leaned my head against the wall. I could tell boredom was just settling in. "Hey Athena!" I shouted. 

I heard my phone chirp on the other end of the bathroom. "Play the newscast for today!'

_**In local news, the science community is watching Joe Sparkes rather closely as he nears completion of his Sparksmaster battery. Mr. Sparkes has gone on to state that he is close to making the prefect power source that can power things in large quantities.  
** _

I shook my head in amusement. "And yet his inventions always seem to have it out for PontyPandy." 

_**In world news,** _

_**The leader of the , Henry "Enrique" Tarrio, was arrested Monday in Washington, DC, for allegedly burning a banner taken from a Black church last month during protests in the city after a "Stop the Steal" rally.** _

_**A law enforcement official told CNN that the DC Metropolitan Police Department charged Tarrio, of Miami, with destruction of property related to a banner that was burned on December 12 outside a church in northwest DC.** _

I groaned inwardly. "Athena! Play my music playlist!" I shouted. 

"Ghost Town" by Layto x Neoni became playing through my phone. I continued to scrub myself down. I finished up and closed out of the app. I dressed into my usual green shirt and jeans. Winter had dinner waiting downstairs. He looked rather proud of himself. "I did it."

I sat down at the table. I took a bite of the chicken. I grinned. "Yeah you did."

"It's not too spicy?"

I shook my head. "Even then it would still be tasty to me." 

Winter let out a sigh of relief. The two of us ate in silence again. Winter had his book in his lap. "You've been reading that an awful lot lately." I commented. 

"I can't help it. I love this book. It's my favorite thing." chirped Winter. 

"Nothing wrong with that. Sam got you that book, right?"

Winter nodded. "It's been super helpful when I've been tending to my garden. I thought about making a flower garden out here too."

"You should considering it'll still be safe from your brother."

"Well I'll get to work once this heat season ends." 

The night hours soon came. I cuddled down underneath of the sheets with Winter. He laid against my chest. "Good night, Mal."

"Night Winter." I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep. 


	2. Roses and Dogs

_Green fire rose into the night. The quay had been set ablaze. I heard screaming. I spotted Winter pinned by a car. "Winter!" I shouted as I rushed towards him._

_Winter looked up. "Malcolm! Look out!"_

_I turned around. A pair of green lights shined in the dark. I suddenly felt something metal collide into me._

I bolted upright in bed. I panted, looking around. Winter stirred in my arms. "Babe, you okay?"

I didn't answer him. I could still make out the fire from my dream. My heart rate went through the roof. I didn't notice that Winter had touched my cheek. He made me face him. "It's alright. I'm right here. Just focus on my voice."

I stared into his eyes. "Your safe." he comforted. He pressed his forehead to mine. "I'm right here."

I sighed softly. Winter's touch grounded me back in reality again. He kissed my cheek. "There we go."

I laid down on my side. Winter held me from behind. I fell into a dreamless sleep.

I woke up the next morning to Winter being gone from my side. I could smell breakfast being cooked. I headed downstairs after him. Winter hummed quietly to himself. I snuck up behind him. I wrapped my arms around his waist. Winter jumped. He went to turn around only to lower his spatula. "Damn it. Don't do that!"

I chuckled. "Sorry. I just couldn't help it." I planted a kiss on his cheek.

Winter pretended to be mad at me. He folded his arms over each other. He looked away. I smirked. "Your fake being angry with me isn't going to work."

Winter sighed. "It's so hard to be mad at you because you know how to weasel your way out of it."

I grinned. I kissed him gently. "I'll leave you alone to cook."

I headed off into the living room. I watched him cook. He was making an omelette with the leftover chicken from last night. I smiled. "Making a Caribbean chicken omelette?"

"Yeah. Trying to at least."

"It smells heavenly. That chili sauce must of really settled in."

I took my phone out of my pocket. I opened up the news app.

**_In local news, PontyPandy is set to open it's new Police Station today. The police force will also be welcoming a new Sergent into it's ranks. The event is being held at noon today._ **

I smiled. "Looks like everyone in PontyPandy is hyped for our new station to open."

"Sounds like it. Oh! You should check the other article that went up today! Some smuck tried to scam a couple of Dragons."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Take a look. Should be under the World News tab."

I tapped on the article that Winter was talking about.

**_Pol-Tec tried to scam some Dragons out of a quarter million dollars this week after a failed presentation. Pol-Tec is responsible for the invention of a Mouse Deterrent. The product hasn't done well enough online, only having a one-star review. The Dragons rejected Pol-Tec's offer after finding out that the company mostly ran on scams._ **

**_The fate of Pol-Tec is currently unknown but it doesn't look like they'll be getting business any time soon._ **

I rolled my eyes. "Let's hope they don't try that stunt again."

"Dunno. Once a scammer, always a scammer." Winter finished cooking. "I can tell you what's not a scam though, A Williams approved breakfast."

Winter walked over with two plates of food. He set them down on the table. "Enjoy."

I put my phone back into my pocket. I took a bite of the egg. I cringed. Winter looked up. I smiled weakly. He tilted his head to the side. He was studying my facial expression. I choked down the bite I had on my fork. It tasted super bitter. "Its...great...love." I choked out.

Winter's face fell. "In other words, this was a bust."

'No. No. Maybe I just had a hard piece." I tried again. The second bite was much worse. "Yep, this omelette is screwed."

Winter looked really upset. "Sorry babe. Perhaps I should of tried a different filling?"

"Perhaps." I placed a hand on his shoulder. "You did try your best."

I ate only about half of that omelette. I had a feeling that it would probably come back to bite me in the ass later. I changed into my work outfit. Winter put on his cap. The two of us headed down to the station.

The townsfolk were already gathering outside of the police station. Winter got to work on keeping everybody a safe distance away. I walked over to the front door. Sam was standing there. "I can't wait to see inside of the new police station." He said.

"Neither can I, Sam. Just have to wait for the new Sergent to arrive." I folded both hands in front of me.

Station Officer Steele grabbed the pair of scissors that were resting by the door. "Well if she's not here, then I could always cut the ribbon for her. Done quite a few openings in my days."

Sam and I glanced up in enough time to see Sergent Ravani walking from behind. She grinned. She gently took the scissors from Station Officer Steele. "I'm sure you have, Station Officer Steele." she mused.

Steele jumped. "However, since this is my new police station. I would like to be the one to start things off."

Steele looked down. "Of course. As you were."

Rose and I both looked at each other. Rose dipped her head towards me. I stepped forward. " Ladies and Gentlemen! I want you to say "hello" to my new boss, Sergent Ravani!"

Rose waved to the crowd. " Hello Everyone!"

" Hello!"

" Welcome to PontyPandy!" shouted Charlie.

" Thank you and thank you to PC Malcolm as well." Rose readied the ribbon. " I now declare the new PontyPandy Police Station open."

Rose gave the ribbon a good snip. The crowd cheered. She smiled. " Now if you guys will all come inside, we have tea and Battanberg cake for everyone."

I watched as the crowd got excited over the mentioning of Battanburg. I held the door open as the herd came rushing in.

Winter rubbed behind his head sheepishly. " I guess people really like their cake, huh?"

I nodded. " Yep. Come on. Lets make sure our poor Sergent doesn't get plowed down in the process."

We entered the building. Rose was doing a very good job in keeping the crowd under control. She looked up at us. " Ah. Gentlemen. Shall we do a tour of the building?" 

Winter nodded. "Yes please!" 

Rose motioned for us to follow her. We followed in behind her. She took us into the interrogation room. It was rather huge. It was kind of like one of those scenes out of Criminal Minds. Winter jokingly sat down in one of the chairs. I joined him on the other side. I folded my hands on the table. "I don't know why you keep trying to hide it. We know you did it."

Winter grinned. "You can't prove anything."

I gestured at the white frosting on his vest. "So it wasn't you that ate the Battanberg cake?"

Winter paled. "Listen, I just couldn't help myself. It was yummy." 

Rose cleared her throat. "If you are done, gentlemen."

We both looked at each other. We followed her out of the room. We took a gander at the small jailblock we had. Winter peered through the window. "They are certainly bigger than some of the holding cells in London."

"I think Headquarters just wants our prisoners to have a taste of small town hospitality." I mused. 

The last room we checked out was the investigation room. It had another one of those computer screens in it. Winter waved his hand. A small browser window appeared. "Wow. Cool." 

I placed a hand on his shoulder. We left him to mess around the computer. We stepped out into the control room. "So what do you think, Sergent?" 

"I think our new station will do nicely, Constable." She looked over and noticed that we had one of those Map Screens set up. "And we even have the latest version of the Map Screen 7000." 

Station Officer Steele looked up. "I'm no stranger to the new technology. We have a similar one at the fire station."

I turned to Rose and mouthed "Oh dear." 

She giggled quietly. She just kept watching him. Steele pressed a few buttons on the screen. He accidentally triggered our lockdown system. _**Emergency! Lockdown in Progress!**_ came an electronic voice over the PDA system. Metal doors started blocking off the various exits inside. 

Rose rolled her eyes. She went over to the screen. She pressed something on the screen which disabled the lockdown system. _**Lockdown Cancelled. All Clear.**_ She turned to Station Officer Steele. 

Steele cleared his throat. "I think this new tech has a few kinks that it needs to work out." 

"Perhaps it does, Station Officer Steele. At least we know that the lockdown system works. Another cup of tea, perhaps?" she suggested. 

"Oh! Don't mind if I do! Yes. Very kind." The two of them headed towards the table that had been set up with the cake and tea. 

I shook my head in amusement. Sam walked up to me. "So you have a new station and a new Sergent. Looks like your settling in quite fine." 

"I am, Sam. I love it here...except." 

He held his cup of tea up only to stop. "Except?" he prompted. 

"The one thing I missed about living in Newtown was solving really big mysteries. PontyPandy doesn't have that." 

"I'm sure you'll be able to crack a really large case here one day, Malcolm."

"I hope so, Sam."

I immediately started to feel sick. I put my hand up to my chest. Sam looked at me in pure concern. "You alright?"

"I think Winter's omelette is fighting back." I groaned. "I'll be back." 

I ended up vomiting in the washroom. I groaned softly. That was the first time I got food poisoning from Winter's cooking. A part of me really didn't want to tell him that I was sick. I cleaned myself up before returning to the floor. Winter walked out of the investigation room. Sam whispered something quietly to him. I saw the world crash around Winter. He ran up to me. "What's this about you being sick?" 

"I'm fine. I think I just had too much cake." I lied. 

He looked at me worriedly. "Should I let the Sergent know?"

"I'll be fine. Nothing a little air won't solve. Besides, I have the night shift tonight." I comforted as I ruffled the top of his head. 

"If your sure." 

The townsfolk had cleared out by the afternoon hours. I ended up worse to wear. Rose walked up to the table I was sitting at. "Constable, Officer Price has informed me that you ended up with food poisoning. I am hereby sending you home."

"What about night shift?" I asked. _Winter..._

"He's offered to trade places with you. I do not want an officer sick on duty."

I sighed despondently. "Yes Sergent." 

I ended up heading home. I wasn't going to lie. I was kind of relieved that I was heading home. My stomach rolled again. I got barely a foot in the door when I vomited into the trash can. I gripped the counter for support. _I think I should handle the cooking until Winter gets a little stronger at it._ I thought. 

I sat down in my recliner. I sighed as I fell asleep. 

_"Malcolm! Look out!" shouted Winter.  
_

_I was having the same dream again. This time I dodged the metal fist that was aimed for my stomach. The metallic figure eyed me firmly. It's eyes then locked onto Winter. I saw it edge towards him.  
_

_"No!" I got between them. The figure slapped me aside. I hit the ground rather hard. I weakly sat up. I watched as it brought it's metal foot down on Winter. A sharp yelp wailed through the night air.  
_

"No!" 

My body bolted upright on the recliner. I panted softly. I placed my face in my hand. _What a horrible dream._ I thought. _I think that chicken is starting to get to me.  
_

I checked my phone to notice two different texts. One was from my therapist's office. 

**Hey Malcolm,**

**It's Twila with Northridge. I'm just sending this text as a reminder that you have a 10 am appointment with me tomorrow. I look forward to seeing you!  
**

The other text was from Winter. 

**Hey Big Cat,**

**Just wanted to check up on you. I'm really sorry that you aren't feeling well. I hope you get better soon.  
**

**-Winter**

I shot Winter a small text back. 

**I'm doing fine. The wave of nausea I had earlier seems to have passed. I did get a text from Twila. I totally forgot I had a therapist appointment tomorrow. Other then that, I'm fine. How's night shift?**

**\- Malcolm**

Winter sent me back a reply. 

**Slow as fuck.  
**

**\- Winter**

**What else is new? I still wished we had a big case to solve.  
**

**\- Malcolm**

**Who knows? With the Sergent in town, we may just get one. I should get back to work. I'll see you in the morning.  
**

**\- Winter**

I put my phone back on the table. I leaned my head backwards. Tiredness steadily took hold of me. 


	3. Turning Tides

I woke up to hearing a key turn slightly in the lock. I reached for my taser. Winter opened the door. He put his hands up. "Hey! It's alright. Just little old me." 

I sighed and set the taser down on the table. I realized I was still dressed in my uniform. Winter came walking in. "How are you feeling?" he asked. 

"I'm alright. I mean I've stopped vomiting." I adjusted myself in the chair. "My stomach did give me some problems throughout the night."

"I see. Did you take anything for it?"

"Not yet but I'll do that after I get home from my appointment." I stood up. I headed upstairs to change. 

Twila had a practice set up in Newtown. The inside of the office felt cold compared to the growing heat outside. I shivered a bit. I lowered the sleeves on my shirt. "Malcolm?" called a female voice. 

I looked up to see a small brown haired lady standing in the hallway. She was dressed in a doctor's coat. She smiled at me. I smiled back. I got up from my chair. I walked over to her. "Good morning. Ready for today's session?" she asked. 

"Yep." 

She took me into a separate room. Her room was down up in warm colors. The roof was painted to look like a cloudy sky. I sat down in one of the chairs. She sat on top of her desk. "Well Malcolm, it's been officially two weeks since the last time I saw you." 

I nodded. "Yeah. Sorry about that. I was busy trying to make sure things went well for the new Sergent's arrival." 

"I heard about that. How did it go?"

"She seemed to transition quite fine. She's impressed with the new station so far." 

"Good. What's she like?"

"A bit blunt. She's a lot more honest than most of the Sergeants I've worked with." 

"I see. Even more blunt than you are?" mused Twila. 

"Yeah. You could say that." I said as I rubbed behind my head. "I think her and I will get along just fine though."

Twila wrote something down in her notes. "How have you been since you moved?" 

"I guess I'm doing okay. Homesickness has really taken though. Winter does his best but I kind of miss living here a bit. There was always something to do." 

She nodded. She wrote that down in her notes. "I expected you to feel homesick at some point. Just not this late. Do you know why you feel the way you do?"

"Well it's like I keep saying. Work here offered me more things to occupy my time with versus out in PontyPandy. Don't get me wrong, I love the peace and quiet. I just wished there was more." 

She lowered her pen. She let it fall onto her notebook. "The only advice I can give to you is to try to make the most of it. I'm sure something will come up eventually. These small towns always have their secrets, you know." 

I nodded. "You're right."

She grinned. "So tell me. How are you and Winter doing? " 

"We're doing super well. Winter is trying his hand at cooking. I ended up super sick yesterday. I just didn't have the heart to tell him that it was from the omelette he made me." 

She put her hands on her hips. "You realize honesty is always the best policy, right?"

"I know but Winter's feelings are a bit squishy. I just don't want him to end up blaming himself." 

"I would still be honest with him anyway. He deserves to know." 

"I know. I know."

Twila opened her notebook again. She scribbled something down in her notes. She then glanced at the clock. "Alright, Malcolm. I'm afraid that's all I have time for today. I do want to see you back here in two weeks." 

"Alright. Same time?"

"Yep. I'll send you a reminder about a week before." 

I walked out of the office. I headed back to PontyPandy. Winter was cooking breakfast by the time I walked in. This time he was making an English breakfast. I smelled the air. I cringed a little. Winter glanced up. "Welcome home. I'm making breakfast."

"Are you making or burning?" I teased. 

He sighed. "Looks like I'm not having much luck either." 

"Here. Let me take over." I walked over into the kitchen.

Winter put a hand on my chest. "No. You should be resting. I've got this." 

I rolled my eyes. "I've got this." 

I stood near the stove. I took over on making breakfast. I managed to actually save it. I plated it up and sat it down at the table in the living room. Winter took a bite. He nodded a bit in approval. "It's a little burnt but it's pretty good." 

I grinned. "I think you need to turn your temp down a bit." 

"I will add that to my notes. How did therapy go?" he asked. 

"It went just like every other session I've had." I replied. "We don't really talk about much. She's just trying to make sure that I'm going to survive the transition period."

Winter nodded quietly. "Well at least one of us gets to sleep in this morning. I get to have a riveting day with Rose."

I chuckled. "Good luck." 

Winter cleared his plate. He headed off to work. I finished mine before sticking it in the sink. I flopped down in bed. I let out a tired sigh. The sheets smelled heavily of Winter. I grabbed onto his pillow. I squeezed it gently. _I should of mentioned the nightmares I've had to Twila. I'll talk to her the next time I have them. I'm going to have to keep a close eye on Winter.  
_

I managed to not have another nightmare. I woke up to the sound of my alarm going off. I groaned. "Five more minutes." I mumbled. 

The alarm kept chirping loudly. I slid my finger across the screen. I blinked tiredly at the wall. Did I really have to get out of bed? I debated that question for the next four minutes before getting out of bed. 

I heard the front door open. "Honey?! I'm home!" shouted Winter. 

"Welcome home!" I shouted back. 

I headed downstairs to meet up with him. I hugged him gently. Winter sighed. He leaned his head against my neck. "You will never stop being the best part of my day." he whispered. 

I grinned. "and you'll never stop being mine." 

I held him tighter. "Shame I have to work tonight. I would really love to stay in bed with you." 

Winter nuzzled me. "As would I but the bills won't get paid otherwise." 

I got changed into my work uniform. Winter handed me a small white box. "So you can have dinner while on patrol." he explained. 

I nodded. I pecked him on the cheek. "See you in the morning." 

I headed down to the station. Rose was waiting for me. A stack of paperwork sat on her desk. She was busy filing them. She stopped once she heard me walk in. "Ah PC Malcolm. Your on traffic patrol tonight."

"Yes Sergent. I'll head right now." 

I drove my bike to a quiet place near the quay. The sun dipped behind the horizon. Stars twinkled in the clear night sky. I leaned back on my bike a little. The one thing I loved about PontyPandy was how clear the sky was at times. The ocean was often very relaxing to listen to. 

I reached into the large white box on the back of my bike. I grabbed the lunchbox that Winter had packed for me. Winter managed to make some fish and chips. The food was a bit burnt. I shook my head and chuckled. At least he tried. I still munched on it anyway. The flavor was actually not that bad. 

I chucked the empty box into a nearby trash can. The radio in my helmet clicked to life. _Constable, possible breaking and entering at Joe Sparkes Garage._ came Rose's voice. 

"On my way." I started the bike off. I sped off towards Joe's Garage. 

Joe was waiting outside. He ran over to me. "Thank you so much for coming!" 

"It's no problem. Can you walk me through what happened?"

Joe nodded. He lead me over to where he had a charger set up. "I only popped out to tell Lizzie and Hannah that I've finally cracked the new Sparksmaster 2098 when I heard crashing. As soon as I came back, the Sparksmaster was gone!"

"Do you mind if I take a look around?" 

"No! Go ahead." 

I began walking around the garage. I didn't notice any footprints leading into the garage. There was a broken coffee cup on the ground. "Hmm." I pulled a set of tweezers off my belt. I gently picked up a broken piece off the ground. "Strange."

I slid the broken piece into a plastic bag. I walked back over to my bike. I stuck the broken piece into the box all while grabbing a torch. I quickly did a sweep of the area to see if the thief was still around. 

I got barely an inch near the fence when I noticed a small Popsicle stick on the ground. I carefully picked it up. Red residue was still on it. I went back to the garage. I shined my light on it. "I don't suppose this belongs to you, Joe?" I questioned. 

Joe shook his head. "No. I don't like Strawberry Supremes. I'm more of a Passionate Peach man myself."

I stuck the stick into a plastic bag. "This is all very puzzling." I headed back over to my bike. "Don't worry though. I'll crack the case of the missing Sparksmaster."

"Sparksmaster 2098." corrected Joe.

I chuckled. "Noted."

I drove off from the garage. I headed back to the station. I walked in carrying both bits of evidence I found at the scene. I put them down on Rose's desk. "Here was what I was able to find at Joe's Garage."

Rose examined them closely. "hmm, that's not a whole lot of evidence."

"I know. I did do a sweep of the area but there wasn't any footprints to go off of. You wouldn't happen to know a forensic specialist would you?"

She grinned. "In fact, I do." 

She went over to the Map Screen 7000. She pulled up a contact list. She tapped on a name on the screen. An older female with red hair streaked with black answered. She lowered the cup she was drinking from. _Sergent! I wasn't expecting you to call!_ She exclaimed. 

"Good Evening, Anika. I want to introduce you to somebody." 

Anika smirked. _Who is tall, dark, and handsome over there?_

I rubbed behind my head. I blushed quietly. Rose rolled her eyes. "That would be Constable Malcolm Williams."

_Hey Constable. I'm Rose's bloodhound. You send me evidence and it's my job to get a name for you. Now what can I do for you two tonight?_

"We had a break-in at a garage in PontyPandy. Constable found at least two pieces of evidence. Can you get fingerprints or something from them?" asked Rose. 

_Absolutely! Go ahead and send them over. I'll give you a call if I find anything! Good night, Sergent._ Anika then hung up the call. 

"I'll send the evidence off for you, Constable. For now, do a sweep around PontyPandy." ordered Rose. 

"You got it."

I headed back out onto the streets again. I drove carefully around town. I couldn't find anyone behaving strangely. "Hmm." I got on the radio. "PontyPandy is clear. No suspicious activity detected." 

_Rodger that. Head back to base.  
_

I stayed at the station until about five in the morning. Winter was waiting for me on the couch. His robe was over the top of his head. He had his earbuds in. I smiled. I carefully lifted him up into my arms. I took him upstairs to our room. 

I laid Winter down on the sheets. Winter curled up. He cradled his pillow against his chest. I stroked his hair. He hummed softly. 

I stripped down into my boxers before joining him in bed. I sighed. I couldn't stop thinking about what happened last night. _Maybe I spoke too soon about wanting to do a large case. It just seems strange that now the universe would toss me a bone._ I thought. 

Winter cuddled close to me. His warmth lulled me to sleep. 

I started to have the same dream again. Green fire, seeing a robotic figure, and hearing Winter get crushed to death. I woke up in a cold sweat. Winter stirred. He held onto me. "Easy Big Cat. I've got you." 

I held Winter against my chest. "Winter, there's something I need to tell you."

"You were having a nightmare about me again?" 

"How did you know?"

"Babe, you kept calling out for me in your sleep. You were also tossing and turning." 

I looked down shamefully. He touched my cheek. "I'm okay. I promise nothing bad will happen to me." 

"I hope your right. You should of seen last night. Joe had somebody break into his garage."

"What? A break-in? This close to PontyPandy?" 

"Yep. However, the evidence I found wasn't too exciting." 

"Well you aren't going to get much in a small town like this. Since we have today off, why don't we head to the beach? It's been so hot lately and I could use a swim." 

"Sure. Why not? Oh and by the way, dinner was tasty last night."

Winter's eyes lit up. "Really?" 

"Really. It was a bit burnt but the flavor really stood out."

Winter leaned against my chest. He let out happy tears. "I've finally done something right." 

I chuckled and patted his head gently. 


	4. Into The Serpent Den

I took Winter down to the beach. He kept his shirt on but stripped down to his shorts. He joined me in the water. He shivered. "Oh! It is nice and cold." 

"Did you remember to put sunscreen on?" 

"I think so." Winter smelled himself. "Nope! I didn't!" he scurried out of the water. 

I shook my head in amusement. Winter coated his arms and legs in it. He then rejoined me in the water. "Done."

"I honestly hope you don't end up giving yourself a wicked sunburn elsewhere."

"I doubt it. I'm not that pasty." 

"I don't know. You look pretty pasty to me." I mused. "You almost blend in with the sand." 

"I didn't choose to be born white." scoffed Winter. 

I held him from behind. "I know you didn't. There's nothing wrong with being pasty. I just don't want you to get burned like last time." 

He turned to face me. "You worry too much." He tapped my nose gently. "Ease up. I'll be fine."

I kissed his cheek before dunking him into the water. I took off running. Winter surfaced. "Oi! Come back here you bugger!" he shouted. 

He chased me further down the shore. I dove into the deep part of the water. I started swimming out towards the middle of the ocean. Winter struggled. He wasn't as good as a swimmer as I was. The current brushed up against his ankles. He shrieked as he fell backwards in the water. "Winter!" I shouted. 

I watched as Winter scrambled to get over to me but the current had caught him. I quickly swam towards him. I wrapped my arm around his waist. I dragged him towards the shore. The both of us sat panting on the beach. "S-sorry." he said sheepishly. 

"It's fine. I was worried I would have to call your dad." I panted. 

"The last thing I want is for my dad to leave the station to have to help my dumb ass." grumbled Winter. 

We heard a car suddenly pass us on the beach. It was a bright white color. It looked to have something in a tarp above it. I frowned. "That doesn't look right."

Winter looked over his shoulder. "You're right. It doesn't. Maybe they are setting up some sort of event?" 

"Not sure. A part of me wants to follow them." 

"Maybe we should mention to Sergent Ravani tomorrow? I mean it is our day off." 

"You're right. Let's just let them be for now. It's probably nothing." 

I could feel my investigator senses tingling. Something just didn't feel right all of a sudden. 

Winter and I returned home. Winter whined as he touched his shoulder. "Yuck. I think I did get sunburned." 

"Oh dear. I told you that you should of taken care of the other parts of yourself."

"Well I guess I have a learning curve then, don't I?" 

"Take off your shirt, ya goober. I'll put the aloe on your sunburn." 

Winter pulled his shirt off. I grabbed the aloe from the cupboard. I gently put some on his burn. He hummed softly. "That feels a thousand times better." 

"I'm glad." I put the aloe on the counter. He put his shirt back on.

The late night hours came. I cuddled with Winter on our bed. I stared up at the roof. For some reason I couldn't get to sleep. I blinked tiredly. _Maybe I just need to take a walk?_ I thought. _Perhaps I have way too much energy.  
_

I gently covered Winter up in the blankets. I changed into my casual clothing before leaving the house. The night air hung. I could hear the crickets chirping in the grass. I began to sweat from the humidity. I took off my shirt. I tied it around my waist. It still didn't make much of a difference. _Ick. Now I have to take another shower when I get back._ I grumbled in the back of my head. 

I jogged down to the beach. The moonlight touched the surface of the water. I followed the shoreline towards the cliffs when a bright light caught my attention. I paused for a moment. I squatted down behind one of the rocks. The light shined again. A figure walked towards the cave that was close by. 

I watched the figure carefully. The last of their form disappeared inside the cave. Floodlights suddenly shined on. I backed up slowly from the rock I was hiding behind. Something told me that I needed to get lost before they spotted me. I snapped a couple of pictures with my phone before running back to the quay. 

I tucked my hands into my pockets. Who was that? Who would be operating floodlights this late at night? I decided to wait to talk to Sergent Ravani the next morning. 

We arrived at the station the next morning. The questions from last night were burning in the back of my head. "Sergent, there's something I need to tell you."

"Go ahead."

"I spotted some weird activity near the cliffs last night." I plugged my phone up to the Map Screen 7000. The images I took appeared on screen. Rose frowned. She waved her hand. She put each one of them up in a row. 

"This is unusual. You said this started happening last night?"

I nodded. "I only found out because I was jogging along the beach. I was going to investigate inside but they were patrolling too close for comfort." I explained. 

"I see. It's a good thing you didn't get too close then. Who knows if they were armed. Good work, PC Malcolm. I'll put the word out. In the mean time, I want you and Officer Price today to investigate that cave."

"Rodger that, Sergent. C'mon Winter." 

Winter nodded. "Right behind you, Constable." 

We headed down to the cliffs. We both hid behind a rock, watching the front of the cave closely. I took out a pair of binoculars. I could see two figures moving under the cover of darkness. "What do you see?" asked Winter quietly. 

"There's somebody in there. I can't see much with how dark it is." I whispered. 

"Should I get a closer look?" 

I shook my head. "I don't want you to accidentally alert them. I've got a better idea." 

I walked over to my ATV. I reached into the large white box and pulled out a small cylinder. The cylinder had a camera on the front of it. I chucked it in front of the rock. Wheels popped out the sides of the cylinder. I took out my phone. The device was a small camera drone. I started to pilot it towards the front of the cave. 

The night vision inside of the camera clicked on. I now had a full view of what was going on. There were two figures inside of the cave. They looked to be assembling something. I moved the drone close to the thing they were working on. The object was covered in a large white tarp. I frowned. I put the drone behind one of the crates. I activated the microphone. I heard a female voice come through the drone. _So we've got the Sparkesmaster battery, I think we're just about ready to-  
_

I heard what sounded like slurping come through the microphone. I let out an annoyed groan. I tried to continue listening. 

_Will you please stop slurping?_

_Sorry..._

_Ow! Ow! Ow! BRAIN FREEZE! BRAIN FREEZE! OW!_

_You need to have a brain before you can freeze it, Crompton. Now, where was I? Oh right. With the power from the Sparksmaster, my new super rescue suit will be one of the greatest inventions ever made. I will be a billionaire!  
_

_Owww...Billionaire...._

_Now we just need to test in an emergency situation.  
_

"Well that doesn't sound too bad." muttered Winter. 

I shushed him and continued listening. _So, I need you to go out and start a fire. I'll show up in my super rescue suit and save the day.  
_

I frowned. "It was okay until that point. We need to warn the station." I piloted the drone out of the cave. I picked it up off the ground. "C'mon." 

We headed back to the station. Rose waited for us. "What have you learned?" 

"We found two suspects at the beach. It looked like they were planning on testing an invention in an on-purpose rescue mission."

"I see. I'll call Station Officer Steele and let him know. You boys be on high alert."

"Rodger that." 


	5. Chaotic Waters

A couple of days had gone by. We were still on high alert for a possible public safety threat. I was beginning to be weary when our targets suddenly went quiet. I leaned against the Cafe Wall. I watched the quay quietly. There was a light crowd out and about. 

Norman and James came running out of the cafe. "Norman-Man keeps an eye out for danger! However, his danger senses don't detect anything. PontyPandy is safe." shouted Norman. 

A loud explosion went off. I frowned. I ran towards the railing. "Help!" shouted Charlie. His boat had suddenly caught fire. 

James gasped. "Oh no! Dad!" He then turned around. "Your Norman Senses should of picked that up!" 

I put a hand on James' shoulder. "Don't worry, James. I'm going to call Fireman Sam. He'll help your dad." 

I got on the radio. "Constable Williams to Emergency Services. Fire spotted on Charlie Jones' ship near the quay."

_Rodger that, Constable Williams. The fire service is en route to your location. Be on standby.  
_

I cleared my throat. "Alright everyone! Move back!" 

I moved the growing crowd away from the railing. I heard the sound of sirens approaching. Venus rounded the bend. It parked outside of the ORC. Penny and Sam went rushing inside. I kept an eye on Charlie's boat. I had a nagging feeling in the back of my head. 

A loud engine tore through the air above me. I caught something metal flying towards the boat briefly. "On..earth?" I muttered. 

That thing was going to collide with Charlie's boat. I went for my radio only to notice it hovering over the fire. It fired a flame retardant onto the flames putting them out. It then grabbed Charlie. I watched as the metal object made it's way back to shore with him. Charlie looked to be freaking out. 

I immediately got ready for an attack. The flying figure put Charlie down on the quay before taking off. Charlie wobbled a bit. "Charlie!" shouted Bronwyn. 

"Dad!" shouted James. 

They rushed over to him. I looked back over at Charlie's boat. Titan was already hooking up to it. I got on the radio. "Just so you know, Sam, Charlie is safely on the quay." 

_Thank you, Malcolm. I'm still unsure of what that was.  
_

"Neither do I, Sam. I am going to question your brother. See if he knows anything." 

_Rodger that. We'll get his boat back to the quay so you and I can do an inspection. Out.  
_

I walked over to where Charlie was. "Charlie, do you mind if I ask you a few questions?" 

"Go ahead." 

I took out my notepad. "Do you know how the fire started?" 

Charlie shook his head. "This is going to seem rather odd but the boat was fine when I boarded this morning. I did hear some tiny scratches behind me. I just thought it was the lobster pods. When I turned around, the pods I was carrying suddenly caught fire."

I wrote that down. "Strange. So you didn't have any open engine compartments? You didn't leave anything flammable near them?" 

"No Constable. I made sure everything was safe before I pushed off." 

"I see." I closed my notepad. "Well Fireman Sam and I will be taking a look at your boat. I'll let you know our findings." 

Charlie nodded. He headed inside the Wholefish cafe with his family. I let out a small sigh. _I just have this nagging feeling. Could those people on the beach be responsible for this?_ I wondered.

I helped Sam dock Charlie's boat. Him and I boarded it. I took a look around. I noticed a pair of footprints coming from the front of the boat. I knelt down by them. "Looks like his boat got broken into." 

Sam knelt by him. He examined the footprints. "Those don't look like anyone I know." 

"I see." I swabbed one of the footprints. I put the swab into a plastic baggie. "Can you examine the lobster pods? You might be able to spot an accidental fire better than I could."

Sam stood up. He headed over to the pods. He took a look at them. I saw him frown. "The engine compartment is open. Looks like somebody put fuel over the engine to cause it to burst into flames."

"Do you think Charlie missed the fuel tank?"

Sam shook his head. "We refueled his boat this morning." He bent down to examine the engine. He wiped some of the fuel off the engine. He smelled it. "This doesn't smell like it was from this morning." 

"So your saying the fire was started on purpose?" I questioned. 

"Yep." 

I wrote a few notes down in my notepad. I made sure to take pictures and samples. "Thanks for your help, Sam."

"My pleasure. I'll send my report off to the investigation team down in Newtown. I'll let you know what they say." 

I nodded. I headed back to the station. Rose was having a conversation with Anika. Both woman looked up at me. _Hey Constable._ greeted Anika. 

"Morning Anika. What's going on?"

_Well I was just about ready to tell Sergent Ravani about the lab results from the previous samples you sent me.  
_

I sat down in one of the chairs. I motioned for her to continue. Anika cleared her throat. _So I managed to find fingerprints on the Popsicle stick you sent me. The only fingerprints I found on the mug were from Joe. The ones on the stick were made by a guy named Crompton Inglewood.  
_

"Did the database have anything to say about Mr. Inglewood?" asked Rose. 

_It did actually. It just said he was a former robotics scientist from an organization known as Creakwood. I'll do some more digging. Hopefully I find out more for you guys.  
_

"Thank you, Anika. I've got more samples for you to examine." I said. 

_Great! Just send them over. I'll send you a copy of the lab results. Keep me posted!_ Anika then hung up the call. 

I looked over at Rose. "Charlie's boat caught fire today. Turns out the fire wasn't accidental." 

Rose lofted an eyebrow. "Go on." 

"Sam and I examined Charlie's boat. Sam ruled the fire to be caused by somebody behind the scenes. I even have the pictures and samples from the site to prove it." 

She nodded. She took my phone from me. She pulled each one of the pictures up on screen. "Hmm, I'm not sure I like the idea of an Arsonist being this close to PontyPandy. We should tell the station to remain on high alert just until we get this case solved."

"Good idea. Who knows if the folks we saw in the cave earlier are going to start another fire." I then rubbed my chin gently. "Crompton...that name sounded familiar. You got the audio I sent you, right?"

"Yes. There was a female in the audio that mentioned a "Crompton". "

"So if we find out who Crompton is working for, we may just have our arsonist." 

"Good thinking, PC Malcolm."

Winter came walking in. He looked between the two of us. "What did I miss?" he asked. 

"Officer Price, so nice of you to show up. Go ahead and take a seat." 

Winter nodded. He quickly sat down. He noticed the pictures I had taken. "Let me guess, our Un-Subs finally stopped beating the bush and actually did something?" he asked. 

Rose nodded. "This time they set fire to Charlie's boat. We even have this to worry about." She pulled up another picture. It looked to be somebody flying around in an armored suit. 

"Whoa. This is some Marvel levels of crazy." commented Winter. 

That was the first time I've ever seen Rose smirk at one of Winter's wise cracks. "You could say that, yes. Whoever it was managed to rescue Charlie before the fire service could." 

"So you sayin we have some sort of Iron-man wannabe flying around?" asked Winter. 

"Possibly. I don't know if "Flying-Man" has connection to our arsonists though." muttered Rose. "In any case, we should remain on high alert. This Flying-Man may become problematic."

The both of us nodded. Rose sent us out on a patrol. We decided to investigate the cave again. We sat a little closer to the front entrance. I piloted the small drone we had inside. I set it close to the desk that a plump, short male was sitting at. He was playing a newscast. _This is Scoop Doley at the scene of one amazing rescue. A mysterious Flying-Man beat the local rescue team to a terrible fire. Word on the street says that this hero is better than Fireman Sam."  
_

Winter let out a soft snarl. "They just got lucky is all." he muttered. 

We continued listening. The female voice started speaking again. _Well that couldn't of gone better.  
_

 _Better than Fireman Sam..._ chimed in Crompton. 

_Look at all this publicity. I can imagine it being posted on billboards, T-shirts, Baseball caps!_

_Oh! Oh! Those jiggly things you wave at baseball games! What were they called again?!_

_Never mind those jiggly things. What we need know is another major rescue. Something to really brighten up the headlines.  
_

I groaned inwardly. "So our Un-Sub has a huge ego problem. Great." I muttered. I piloted the drone out of the cave. I tucked it away in my pocket. "Let's just keep an eye out the next week or so. Hopefully they're bluffing."

"That's what you said last time." countered Winter. 

"I know and looked what happened. I really mean it this time. These two are not going to get away with this." 


	6. Memories of The Past

Chapter Six:

I woke up to the sound of my phone going off the next day. Winter reached over. He sent whoever was calling to voicemail. He held me close. "Go back to sleep."

I sighed. I settled down further in bed. Winter cuddled more into my chest. I rested my hand behind his head.

_Water surrounded each side of the vehicle. I banged against the window harshly. The window was breaking. Water was starting to fill. My partner sat panicking. "Malcolm! Hurry!" he shouted._

_I banged against the glass again. "I'm trying!"_

_Water kept filling the car. I banged on the glass one last time. It finally shattered. I swam out first. My partner tried to but he got stuck. I went to go free him. My lungs aching for a breath. He put his hands on my wrist. He looked up at me sadly when he realized his fate. He shoved my hand away from him._

_I reached out towards him._

I woke up in a cold sweat. I panted harshly. I found it much more harder to breathe than usual. Winter sat upright. He wrapped his arms around my stomach. "Easy big cat. Slow your breathing down a bit."

I gripped the sheets. I zoned out for a moment. I could still see the car sinking faintly in my vision. One of my arms went up like I was trying to grasp something. I felt Winter hold me down gently in bed. He planted his lips on mine firmly.

I gasped as I kissed him back. His touch was what brought me back to reality. I held him close. His mouth melted into mine. I could smell the oranges on his breath. I pulled away. He searched my eyes. "You okay?" he asked.

I nodded quietly. We stayed staring at each other for a bit before Winter climbed off me. He reached into the drawer on his side of the bed. He pulled out a plastic pill bottle. He set it down on his nightstand. "I hate to do this, Babe, but you need to take your medication again."

I waved him off dismissively. "I'm fine."

"No you're not. Take it." He hands it to me. "I'll go and get you some water."

He headed off downstairs. I sighed. I stopped taking my pills once my symptoms were stable enough. I really didn't like having to take it only because it made me numb and tired. Winter came back. He handed the glass of water over to me.

I shoved the pill into my mouth. I used to the water to wash it down. I handed the empty glass over to him. He put the empty glass on the nightstand. We ended up embracing each other again. I rested my head on Winter's shoulder.

I checked my phone to notice a missed video call from Anika. I redialed her number. Anika appeared on screen. _Hey Malcolm._ She greeted.

"Morning Anika. What details do you have for us?"

_It didn't take me long to run the DNA from the prints you gave me. They're a match from the Popsicle stick that was sent in. I have a feeling that Mr. Inglewood could be our mastermind._

"But Crompton doesn't appear to be the leader. From what we know, he seems to be more of a follower." I argued.

_Fair point! I'll keep searching. I still can't find much in a way of a work history for him though the name "Pol-Tec" keeps coming up._

"Pol-Tec?" prompted Winter.

 _Let me do a quick Google search here._ I watched as Anika glared at her screen. _Pol-Tec. Pol-Tec. Ah-ha! Here we go. It says here that they are a brand new tech company. Their name has recently appeared in the database. However, the only thing they have is a mouse deterrent that has a one-star review._

"Does it say who runs the company?"

 _Uhh, let me see._ She eyes her screen a bit more. _Damn, talk about Eighties hairstyles gone wrong. It's owned by a chick named Polonium. Looks like her and this Crompton guy work together._

I nodded. "Thanks Anika. I'll pass that information along to Rose."

 _Glad I could be of service._ Anika hung up the call. I put my phone back on the nightstand.

"You know, Anika really kicks ass at this sort of thing." commented Winter.

"I know. Now we know who to look out for. However, we aren't sure what they look like."

"Fair point. Oh! Before I forget, can we please head out and grab some groceries? Our fridge is looking a little scarce."

I sat upright in bed. "If that's what you want to go do."

"Yeah. We aren't due to work until the Afternoon hours so."

I tossed the blankets off me. The both of us got changed into our casual wear. We went down to Dilys' Cut Price shop. A short, pudgy man was inside buying a box of ice lollies. I recognize them as being Strawberry Supremes. _Hang on a minute. Every stick I've found on the scene has been from a Strawberry Supreme. Could this be Crompton?_ I wondered.

The man paid for his ice lollies and left. Winter noticed his walking pattern. He giggled. "He has a funny walk."

I smirked. "That he does." 

_However, his walking pattern doesn't match the tracks that were found on Charlie's boat._ I thought. I kept the image of the man in mind but shelved the thought of him being Crompton.

Winter pulled out his phone. "Let's see we need eggs, bread, milk, etc."

I grabbed a basket from beside the counter. "Just call them out as we walk."

Winter nodded. We began doing our walk. The both of us heard shuffling near the counter. I glanced over the top of one of the rows to see Dilys setting up a stand. The stand had items pertaining to Flying-Man on it. I groaned inwardly. _Count on everyone to become obsessed over this Flying-Man._ I grumbled.

Winter giggled when he saw me do my "One-Thousand Yard" eye roll. He went over to his mom. "Mom, what are you doing?" He asked.

Dilys jumped. "Winter! You mustn't sneak up on mother dearest like that!"

He laughed. "Sorry. I couldn't resist."

"I'm setting up a merch stand to sell Flying-Man themed items to our customers." explained Dilys. She then pointed to a large box of potatoes. "Plus it gives me a chance to finally get rid of these potatoes."

"I see..well have fun with that. Malcolm and I are going to finish our shopping."

Winter walked back over to where I was. He shot me an apologetic look. I patted his head. We went back to shopping.

Winter paid for our stuff. We both spotted Trevor's bus go past. It had a big red banner with Flying-Man on it. Winter shook his head. "We'd better see what's going on."

I nodded. I followed Winter to the quay.

There was a small crowd gathering. "Flying-Man Fishy nibbles! Get your fishy nibbles here! On sale now!" chanted Bronwyn.

Dilys showed up. She set down a sign that had Flying-Man on it. "Get all your official Flying-Man merchandise at Dilys' Cut Price Store. Free Potato with every tea towel."

Trevor then rode past in his bus. "Roll up! Roll up! Come see where it happened! Take Trevor's Tour of PontyPandy!"

I literally felt my jaw drop a bit. Winter exchanged a sideways glance with me. Penny and Ellie were looking at the chaos. Penny had a rather defeated look on her face. I walked over to them. "Does this thing always happen in PontyPandy?" I asked.

Penny did a "maybe" motion with her hand. "The last time PontyPandy had this much fuss was when Buck Douglas was in town."

"Don't forget Hollywood too, Penny." added Ellie.

"That too." Penny placed her face in her hand. "I don't think I can facepalm any harder."

Ellie patted her shoulder. I chuckled softly. "Hopefully this "fuss" should wear off soon."

Winter and I headed back to our place. Winter began putting the stuff we bought away. He tucked a box of Fruit Punch flavored lollies away into the deep freeze. His phone started to go off. He took it out of his pocket. "Yes mom?"

He nodded. "Sure. When does he want to go out?"

He nodded again. "A couple of days from now sounds fine. I shouldn't have work that day. Love you. Bye." He hung up. "Mom's wanting me to take Norman and James up into the mountains on my day off. I'm starting to think she doesn't trust those two alone."

I folded my arms over my chest. "To be honest, when can Norman ever be trusted."

Winter thought about it for a moment. He chuckled. "True. It's amazing that my mother lets him get away with shit."

I ruffled the top of his head. "Try to enjoy your day off after you're done helping your brother with whatever scheme he has cooked up."

"I'll try to."

"Do. There is no try." I purred.

He kissed me on the cheek. He headed off to get lunch sorted.

Rose was in the investigation room. She was examining all the photos and samples we had. I cleared my throat at her. She turned around. "PC Malcolm, so nice of you to show up."

"Trying to profile our suspect?" I questioned.

"More like trying to find a connection between all of this. Every time I do, my mind draws a blank."

"I might be able to help. Profiling is kind of my thing." I looked at the evidence she had on screen. "Let's start with the battery. We know that it was stolen by a man named Crompton. He also works for a company called "Pol-Tec" according to what Anika told me. Crompton works for a female by name of Polonium."

I pulled up the picture of Charlie's boat. "Fireman Sam told us that the fire aboard the boat was done on purpose. The DNA from the footprints matched the DNA found on the Popsicle stick from Joe's Garage. Both crimes were done by Crompton."

I then pulled up the picture of Flying-Man. "That just leaves the Mystery of Flying-Man. Rose, do you still have that audio that I recorded from the cave?"

"Absolutely." Rose plugged a USB stick into the console. The computer pulled up the audio file. "From the audio file, we know that the owner of the suit is female. We just don't have a name for our other Un-Sub yet. It'll be hard to get one without proper DNA evidence to back it up."

Rose nodded. "Would you say our female Un-Sub is an inventor of some sort?"

"Possibly. I want to find the Flying-Man suit and swab it for evidence."

"Do that and we may just know the name of our Un-Sub."

I grinned. We were so close to cracking PontyPandy's first big case. I heard a yelp outside of the room. Rose and I ran out to see Winter with his foot caught in the door to the lounge. I grinned and folded my arms over my chest. Winter smiled at me sheepishly.

Rose cleared her throat. "Officer Price, do you require assistance in getting out?"

Winter thought for a moment. "Um, if you don't mind."

I heard Rose sigh. She walked over to him. She unwedged him from the door. Winter smiled. "Thanks Sergent."

"You are very welcome. I would advise watching your corners next time, Officer Price."

Rose then headed off to her office. Winter and I both looked at each other. "Right. Let's get started on our evening patrol."

Winter nodded. The both of us left the station.

  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  



	7. Close Connections

A couple of days go by. Winter was getting ready for his outing. My phone buzzed quietly in my pocket. I looked to see a reminder that my therapy appointment was in one week. I just stuck my phone back in my pocket. I hugged Winter from behind. "Enjoy your outing today, love. Even if it's just you babysitting Norman."

He turned around to face me. He touched my cheek. "Actually, I want to go out with you later." 

"Alright. What do you want to do later?" I asked. 

"Can we please hit up that diner place? It's been a while since you and I have gone out." 

I nodded. I kissed his forehead. "Your wish is my command." 

He smiled. He pulled away from me. "Have a good day at work. Try not to murder Rose."

I chuckled. "Rose hasn't given me a reason to become unglued yet." I watched as Winter left the house. 

I had a growing pile of paperwork on my desk when I arrived at the station. I let out a small groan of annoyance. I heard Rose chuckle. "A necessary evil, I'm afraid."

"You have one small fire in PontyPandy and suddenly HQ wants a five page essay on it." I muttered. I grabbed one of the files off the pile. 

The morning hours could not have gone slower. I was half-way through dealing with paperwork when I received a text from Winter. 

**Hey Big Cat. The boys and I are returning to PontyPandy early. (Winter attaches a picture of a bright red flower near the edge of the river) At least I caught this beauty out in the wild.  
**

**How is work?**

**-Winter**

**Boring as usual. No Crompton Chasing for me I'm afraid. Headquarters wants a five page essay on the fire.  
**

**\- Malcolm**

I set my phone down. I went back to work on writing my report. I finally finished it and stuck it into a folder along with the photos that Rose had selected. I sighed and leaned back in my chair. My phone buzzed quietly on the table. I glanced at it to see another text from Winter. His text had a very panicky tone to it. 

**Hey Mal. I may of gotten into a spot of bother. What's the likelyhood that someone like me will survive a train crash?**

**\- Winter**

**A very low chance. Why? Are you okay?**

**\- Malcolm**

**I just heard Gareth shout that he had no brakes. The train is moving very quickly. Call dad!**

**\- Winter**

I paled. I immediately stood up. I called the fire service as I left the station. I drove the bike up to the train station. I sent a text to Winter. 

**Try to stay calm, Winter. I've notified the fire service. I'm currently waiting at the train station. The Fire Service is on their way. Remember, its' our job to keep the other people calm too.  
**

**\- Malcolm**

I waited for the fire service. I tapped my foot impatiently on the ground. _Hopefully we don't have to deal with Flying-Man. I can't take him interfering on another rescue._ The sound of sirens caught my attention. I smiled seeing Sam and the others. I ran up to them. "Sam! I'm here to help!"

Sam nodded. "Can you just wait here with the others? We may need someone on standby in case the train collides at the end of the line."

"You got it." 

Tom lowered the harness. Sam climbed into it. I watched as him and Penny took off down the line. My heart pounded in my chest. I grabbed the other fire extinguisher that was inside. _I really hope that this doesn't result in causalities._ I immediately grew worried for Winter. _I can't afford to lose him.  
_

Arnold, Ellie, and Elvis all stood close to Bessie's shed. It looked like they were bracing for the worse too. I kept on the other side of the track. 

Ellie's radio went off. _Everyone is safe but be ready for impact at the end of the line.  
_

I let out a sigh of relief. At least Winter and his family was safe. We waited for the train to come barreling down our way. _Hang on team. The Sam-mobile might just safe the day._ came Penny's voice through the radio. 

I looked at the others. Arnold and Elvis both grinned at me. "The "Sam" what?" 

"The Sam-Mobile. It's an upgraded version of Venus." explained Arnold.

"Right..."

We heard the sound of tires screeching. We looked up to see Venus sliding behind the PontyPandy Flyer. Arnold let out a gasp. We braced ourselves. The Flyer was heading right for the buffers. The Flyer gently slowed to a stop. It lightly pressed up against the buffers. 

Penny climbed out of Venus. She had a rather smug look on her face as she walked over to us. Ellie grinned. "Good job, Penny."

Arnold chuckled. "Maybe we should name it the "Penny" mobile."

"I'd much rather it be called Venus, thanks." countered Penny. 

Sam and Gareth landed right next to Venus. Gareth let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Sam."

"It's no problem, Gareth."

Flying-Man came out from behind the train station. He hovered right in front of us. Ellie put her hands on her hips. "Has anybody noticed that Flying-Man seems to always appear right near emergencies?" 

I watched Flying-Man narrow his eyes. He took off in a hurry. Sam turned to Ellie. "Yes. Always. I think we'd better check out what caused this one, eh Malcolm?"

I nodded. I couldn't help but feel as though the emergencies and Flying-Man were connected. 

"Before we do, we need to retrieve the passenger car that's still on the line." pointed out Penny. 

"Right. Let's take Venus up to the mountain and then tow the passenger car down. The hook on the back of the train was damaged from Flying-Man holding onto it for so long." 

Penny nodded. The two of them left in Venus. I put the Fire Extinguisher I was holding back on it's hook. I got on the radio. "Constable Williams to Sergent Ravani."

_Go ahead.  
_

"The passengers aboard the PontyPandy Flyer are safe. Penny and Sam are in the process of retrieving them now. I'm heading down to the mountains to investigate what happened once they get back." 

_Rodger that. Let me know your findings. Out.  
_

Venus came back with the passenger car in tow. They pulled up to the platform. Winter came walking out with the rest of the group. He ran over to me. I caught him in my arms. Winter leaned his head against my neck. I tightened my hold on him. "I'm so glad your okay." I whispered. "I was so worried." 

Winter smiled. "Me too. I don't think dying via train explosion was on my list today."

I rested my head on his shoulder for a few more moments. I then let go of him. "I have to head up to the mountains. Are you going to be okay?"

Winter nodded. "I'll be fine. Just be careful when you get up there."

"Always am." 

I headed over to where Sam was waiting. He drove us up to the mountains in Venus. I leaned my head against the glass. I could feel myself starting to zone out. Sam seemed to pick up on it. "I really don't like this "Flying-Man" figure." he muttered. 

"Neither do I, Sam. I'm starting to think that this is all connected. I mean we've barely just scratched the surface." 

"Where do you think he came from, Malcolm?" asked Sam. 

"Not sure. I've been asking that very same question since he first arrived." 

Sam nodded. He tapped his fingers against the wheel. "If it turns out that he means no harm, then I have a feeling he may just put us out of a job."

A light went off in my head. "You know what, Sam? Winter and I were watching this cave near the cliffs. This female voice kept going on and on about how she needed to test her rescue suit. I don't think we're dealing with an arsonist but with a narcissist. She may be trying to find a way to replace you."

Sam thought for a moment. "That's a very solid observation. I'm no detective but I'll roll with you on that." 

We arrived in the mountains. I got out of Venus. We walked over to where the train platform was. I put on a set of gloves. Sam started to do a sweep of the area. I spotted something hanging out of the trash can. I carefully fished it out. I frowned. It looked like a brake block of some sort. "A brake block. Somebody's been tinkering." 

Sam knelt in front of a dark purple toolbox. "Odd place to leave a toolbox." he commented. He carefully opened it up. There were tools used to work on trains in there. A small red crab came walking out. "We don't get crabs in the mountains."

"No. You do find them on the beach." 

I took out a small q-tip and swabbed the brake block. I then handed the brake block over to Sam. "Make sure Gareth gets this back. I'm going to do one more swab then head out to the beach." 

Sam nodded. "Thanks for your help."

I smiled slightly. I swabbed the toolbox. I put each of the q-tips into baggies. "Let's head back to the train station. I've got to drop these samples off with Rose."

Sam drove me back to the train station. I had Winter come back to the police station with me. I handed the new samples I had found over to Rose. "These were from the train platform near the mountains. I found the brake block that belonged to the Flyer in the trash can. We also found a weird toolbox on the ground."

Rose nodded. "Excellent work, PC Malcolm. I'll send these off to Anika. Anything else?" 

"We also found a crab that doesn't belong in the mountains as well. I'm heading down to that cave. I think it's time to make an arrest." 

"Alright. Good luck. Radio me if you need backup." 

I turned to Winter. "Do you want a lift home?"

"If you don't mind." 

Winter and I headed out to the garage area. I decided to use the ATV. Winter got on behind me. He buried his face in my backside. I smiled. I drove him back to the house. I waited until he went inside before making my way to the beach. 

The beach was surprisingly quiet. I spotted Norman and James examining a sand castle that was randomly placed. I pulled over to talk to them. "You boys haven't seen anyone suspicious have you?" I asked. 

Norman and James both looked at each other. Norman gave me a smug look. "My Norman Senses have detected nothing." 

James scowled. "They never do."

I sighed. "Okay. Okay. Thanks for your help." I muttered as I drove away. Most days I felt like Norman had a few screws loose. 

The front of the cave came into view. Movement behind one of the rocks caught my attention. I frowned. "Hey! You two!" I shouted. 

The figures immediately took off running. I revved the engine. I sped off after them. "Two suspects seen on the beach. Going into Hot Pursuit." I radioed. 

_Rodger that. Do you have a visual on what they look like?_

I looked at them. "One of them is a female with dark hair while the other is a short male with a..." I noticed the way he was running. I immediately got a flashback to when Winter and I went shopping. "Really unique run." 

_Rodger that. Keep a visual on them. I'm on my way.  
_

The figures made a b-line for the forest. The female hopped the fence without too much of an issue. The man stumbled over the top of it before recovering. He continued to chase after the female. "Stop! Police!" I shouted. 

I parked the ATV before jumping over the fence after them. The two of them managed to escape my view. I panted softly looking around. I got on the radio. "I've lost sight of them but I'll do a sweep of the area."

_10-4, Constable. I'll do a sweep of PontyPandy. Out.  
_

I began walking around the forest. I looked behind every tree in the forest. I heard the bushes rustle again. I glanced up to see the two of them bolting for the fence bordering the forest from the town. I grinned. I gave chase. 

The male gasped when he saw me. "Professor Polonium! He's behind us!"

The female growled. She dragged the male by the arm. The two of them took off running again. I stayed right up on them. I chased them through the top half of the town. I watched as they made a b-line for Joe's Garage. "Stop!" I shouted. 

The female looked over her shoulder. She smirked. She kicked over one of the rubbish bins. I ended up tripping over it. I grunted as I fell over. I growled. I got back on my feet. The both of them disappeared behind the house. 

I gave chase once more only to find them gone completely. I let out an annoyed growl. I leaned against the wall for a moment to catch my breath. _PC Malcolm, where were the targets last seen? Over._ came Rose's voice. 

"I just lost them near Joe Sparke's Garage. I'll grab the ATV and begin my search again. I do have to give them credit. They know how to make a speedy getaway." 

_For now. I'll keep an eye out for them. Out.  
_

I headed back to the beach. I drove the ATV into town. I searched every alleyway and street corner. I could feel myself getting frustrated. I rounded the corner of Stan Lee street. Two familiar figures caught my attention. I grinned. I flashed my lights. The figures looked at me. Both of them panicked. They began running again. 

Rose passed under the bridge. She quickly parked in the center of the street, cutting them off. I parked my ATV behind them. Both figures huddled close together. "Hold on a minute you two. We want to ask you a few questions about Flying-Man." 

The female's eyes widened for a second before calming. "Flying-Who? I'm not sure what you are talking about."

I raised my eyebrow at her. 

"We've just come to PontyPandy for..a...holiday. Yes. That's it. A holiday." she stammered. She then looked down at the man next to her. "Right?" 

"Well...No actually..We came to..."

The female stepped on the man's heel causing him to yelp in pain. "Yes! A holiday! A wonderful sunny holiday!" 

"Really? So neither of you use the flight suit that was to steal the-" I got caught off by the sound of screaming. 

"What is that?" asked Rose shocked. 

Flying-Man came flying through the air suddenly. There was a small bit of washing line attached to his ankle. I felt my jaw drop a little bit. I shook my head in disbelief. "Looks like Flying-Man got caught in a washing line."

"Wait? Isn't that our-" the man got caught off by the female again. 

I turned to them. "But if you two are here, and Flying-Man is there. Then who?" 

The female held up her hands. "Nothing to do with us I'm afraid, Officer." She smiled innocently at the two of us. 

"I'm afraid we're going to have to let them go, PC Malcolm." sighed Rose. 

"But the train! The missing Sparksmaster!" I whined. 

Rose looked at me sadly. "Looks like we're back to Square One." 

The female glanced between the two of us. "Well if it's alright with you two, I think we'll go and enjoy our holiday." 

I watched as the two of them walked past Rose's car. I rubbed my chin. "Something just isn't right about those two." I muttered. 

Rose placed a hand on my shoulder. "I have the same feelings you do but we don't know if those two are our un-subs. We should wait to see what Anika says."

I nodded. We headed back to the station. I finished doing some more paperwork. I just couldn't shake the feeling of being angry. We were so close but now we were right back where we started again. Rose walked into my office with a cup of tea in hand. She set it down gently on my desk. "Fustrated?" she asked. 

"Just a tad. We were just so close." 

She smiled apologetically. "Don't worry. Once Anika submits her results, I'm sure we can finally stick a face to a name."

I took a sip of my tea. I leaned back in my chair. She glanced at the clock. "Besides, it's nearly time for you to clock out isn't it?"

I nodded. "I just have one more thing to file then I'll go." 

We both heard the Map-Screen chirp suddenly. We both rushed in to see an incoming call from Anika. Rose picked up the call. "Anything?"

_I've got some good news. We can finally match a face to a name. I've got some pretty pictures to send you two. The DNA you guys sent me all match each other. The Toolbox was the only one to have two separate DNA signatures.  
_

Anika pulled up two pictures. _Our suspects are Professor Polonium and Professor Crompton.  
_

I heard Rose groan angrily once the pictures came up on screen. "The two people we've just let go."

 _Oh. Damn. Well I'm sure you guys can find them again now that you know what you are dealing with. Best of luck._ Anika then hung up the call. 

I looked to Rose. I saw how clenched her fists were. She let out a sharp sigh to calm herself. "I want you and Officer Price to patrol the streets tomorrow. I want these guys found and arrested."

"You got it, Sergent." 


End file.
